


Zoey's Extraordinary Choice

by colour_outside_the_lines



Category: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (TV)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Comfort, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Grief/Mourning, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, Love Triangles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:14:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23794456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/colour_outside_the_lines/pseuds/colour_outside_the_lines
Summary: Seven days. That’s how long it had taken Zoey to realise the weight of what had happened. Seven days. That’s how long it had taken Zoey to realise just how much she wanted him in her life.
Relationships: Zoey Clarke/Max Richman, Zoey Clarke/Simon Haynes
Comments: 29
Kudos: 34





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This is going to be canon divergent from 1x10 onward. 
> 
> Both Zoey/ Max and Zoey/ Simon are tagged in this fic because it will have elements of both of them in it, though I have already made my mind up on what I want the endgame of this fic to be. 
> 
> The prologue / preface chapter starts ambiguously for a reason.

Prologue

One week. Seven days. That’s how long it had been since she had seen him- and since the first day she’d met him, seven days was the longest she had ever gone without spending any time together They had texted each other, and had spoken on the phone or FaceTimed here and there; when they had FaceTimed they’d often found themselves talking about ‘the bake off’ they’d sent each other pictures, but none of those things were the same as actually being around him. 

had taken her three days to realise just how much she missed him. The first day she had felt a nagging feeling deep in the pit of her stomach that there was something wrong about her day to day life. 

She had easily been able to play that feeling off at first, after all, it had only been _one day_ since she had seen his dark eyes, and charming smile, she thought that maybe it was just her crush playing tricks on her and taking hold of her emotions, controlling her thoughts, feelings, and hormones and having her acting like she was back in high school. 

By the second day, that feeling in her gut grew stronger and stronger, and soon she started to miss more and more about him; his soft, smooth voice, his laugh, the aura that he had about him that just made her feel better no matter what kind of day she had been having. 

On the second night after a particular text exchange that had made her heart clench when she thought about not seeing him around tomorrow, she decided that she was going to fully submerge herself into her work. She had a bake off to win, and she, along with everyone else on the fourth floor were determined to make it happen. 

They owed it to Leif and Joan to win this thing. After all, it had been Leif’s idea, that he’d fleshed out with the all too intimidating woman, who would do god knows what to her workers if they lost. That idea had been conceived in the minds of the fourth floor, and had been born there, they had delivered the pitch to the CEO of Sprq Point, he had liked _their_ idea. They were all sure as hell that it was going to stay as their idea, on the fourth floor where it belonged. 

The distraction was much needed, and for the most part it worked, though there would still be certain points in the day when she would look up from her desk expecting to see him, his dark eyes, and soft, warm smile that made her smile whenever she saw it, but all she would be met with was an empty chair. 

Every time she looked up expecting to see him only to be met with empty space made her heart sink lower and lower to the pit of her stomach, and at that point Zoey couldn’t deny it anymore. She missed him, she missed him more than she had ever thought possible. 

She wished more than anything that she could be there with him, or that he would change his mind at the last minute and stay here with her. She knew those thoughts were selfish, and that was one thing that she didn’t want to be, not when he was the least selfish person she could have ever wished, or hoped to meet. 

She knew that him going was what was best for him, for both of them maybe. They needed some time apart to really think things through and think about all the things that had happened between them over the last few months. Everything had been such a whirlwind since she had heard him sing that very first heart song. 

Hearing him sing had been what had started this, had she not known his feelings then, none of this would have happened, and wouldn’t still be happening now if she could just turn off her power and stop the heart songs for a single day. 

That’s what they’d argued about wasn’t it? 

How he kept holding on to things, and couldn’t really let them go. That no one really understood why he was where he was right now. 

She had regretted those words as soon as they had left her mouth, and though what he had said in return had been harsh, she knew that it’s what she needed to hear, what she needed to be told and she knew that no one else around her was going to be as honest as him. 

He was honest, everything he had said to her that day had been the truth. Though, at the time, it had only added to her anger, she hadn’t been ready to be hit with such hard facts, but now that she’d had time to cool off, she realised it was definitely what she needed. 

She knew that she had only acted that way due to her grief and the inability to actually face what was happening and take it all in. But she had never had to accept anything like this before, she had never had to experience anything close to the pain and anguish that she felt right now. She had no idea how she was supposed to handle it. 

For months, she and her family had been told that the medication was working, that her father’s disease was slowing down and that they were going to have more time with him. In those months they had even found ways to communicate with him, through buzzers and him spelling out words to them on a laptop- all of those things had been good signs, and Zoey had caught herself hoping and praying for a miracle, she had truly believed somewhere deep in her heart, that her father could get better. 

He was the strongest and bravest man that she had ever known in her life, and she had seen him overcome so many things in her life, and she was sure that he could fight something like this and win, she had seen him fighting it, and then BAM out of nowhere the bombshell had been dropped on the four of them. 

He wasn’t getting better, the medication had stopped working and his health would only deteriorate from here on out. 

Her grief had soon bubbled over into anger, and she had taken that feeling out on those around her, she had hurt two people in her life that until now she would have never dreamed of hurting. Two people that she had deep, genuine feelings for. 

Two people that when her powers had glitched and she’d sang heart songs of her own, had been given two of the most honest performances she had given that day. 

She knew that both songs she’d sung had meant very different things, that much was obvious to anyone who listened to them. To anyone who actually soaked in the lyrics and really heard them. She couldn’t deny the feelings that she had expressed in either of those songs. 

She had sung _heart_ songs to both of them, containing feelings that she desperately needed them to know and that she couldn’t hold in any longer. She knew that they shared the same root emotion, albeit different intensities, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have real and valid feelings for both of them. She just felt those feelings in a different way. 

She had sung her feelings to both of them, had opened up about her feelings and had felt herself getting closer to them both, and now, because of her grief and feelings she couldn’t properly un-package and couldn’t accept, she had lost them both. 

But one loss felt far bigger than the other, it hit her harder than she would like to admit, than she ever would admit, and all she had been able to do for the last seven days was thinking about how they had parted, how they had been so close to something and had ended up with, whatever it was they had now. 

She felt worlds away from him now, and she didn’t know what she could do to fix things, or make things better, or if she should do anything, or just let things play out naturally. She did know that she needed to see him again, and actually see him, no more FaceTime calls, no more texts, no more dorky pictures that he sent to her to make her laugh when she was feeling low. 

He always knew just what to do to make her smile, without her telling him how she felt, he just seemed to know, he had a way of reading her and knowing exactly how she was feeling. She had needed to tell him when she felt alone, or down, he just knew and without prompting had sent her any picture he could that he thought might make her laugh, or at the very least smile. It had worked. 

But she needed more than that now. She needed actual closeness, even if all they could have now was friendship. She would take friendship with him over nothing, she would take a simple friendship any day of the week if it meant that she could spend time with him again. 

Seven days. 

That’s how long it had been since she had last seen him. 

It had been nine days since they’d had their fight, and even after that, when they had seen each other, things had been strained, they hadn’t been the way they were before. The words she had said to him, and that he had said to her still clung to her gut and made her ache as she thought about how she had treated him, and for what? 

Because she was angry? Because she was grieving and had never had to process a feeling as gut wrenching and mind warping as this? Because she didn’t even _know_ how to process a feeling like that? 

All she could think about was if she had acted like this while her father was still here, just how was she going to act when he was actually gone? When she couldn’t see him anymore? Couldn’t hug him or go be with him when she needed a shoulder to cry on? 

She dreaded to think about the things she would say and do when that wave of grief finally hit her, and she knew that one day, sooner than she would have ever thought or liked, it was going to hit her. She already felt sorry for the people in her life that would be on the receiving end of her razor sharp, poisonous tongue. 

Nine days. 

That’s how long she’d had to think about the way she had treated him, and how she had treated her, though what he had said to her had definitely been more warranted than what she had said to him, she had been unprovoked. She’d had nine days to apologise for those things, and some days it felt like that’s all she had done; apologise, over and over and over again no matter how many times he told her she didn’t have to. 

No matter how many times he told her that he understood. 

Of course he understood, he always did, he always had and Zoey was starting to think that he always would. No matter what she had thrown at him, or how things had played out, even when she had done things she shouldn’t have, he had been there for her. He was _always_ there for her. 

Seven days. 

That’s how long it had taken Zoey to realise the weight of what had happened. 

Seven days. 

That’s how long it had taken Zoey to realise just how much she wanted him in her life. 

Seven days.


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One

Zoey Clarke had never felt such a high intensity of nerves coursing through her body in her life. She didn’t feel nerves like this when she had interviewed for her dream job at Sprq Point, or when she had actually been offered the job and had arrived on the first day of orientation to see that she was the only one of the new starters that was a woman, (She knew that the tech and coding industry was a male dominated field, but still, she had expected to see at least one other new female employee.)

She hadn’t even experienced nerves like this when she had first approached Joan about the team leader position and had put her name down for the promotion. She hadn’t felt nerves like this when she had interviewed for the position either. She had known that she was the best person for the job, and that’s exactly what she had told, Joan. 

She was usually so sure of herself and all the decisions she made, Zoey had no regrets in life, or at least, up until now she’d had no regrets in her life. Her dad had always taught her not to regret anything or dwell on the things she had done in the past, because at one point, it must have been what she wanted. 

She had been given that lesson at sixteen years old and had carried it with her everyday since. But now, she was having a hard time not dwelling on the things she had said or done ten days earlier. For the first time in her life Zoey was feeling regret and she definitely didn’t like it. 

As she approached the elevator she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down, what happened was in the past, and there was nothing she could do to change that now. But the uncertainty of what life was going to be like now clung to her gut and crippled her with nausea. 

The dread she felt at having to see both Max and Simon hit her like a ton of bricks, she figured that all she could do was hold her head high and try her hardest to not let her personal life affect her work life. She knew she was going to have some hard conversations. 

Conversations that she definitely needed to have. 

She knew that she needed to apologise to both of them, and not over the phone, or in a fleeting comment that was tacked on to the end of a statement. They needed actual apologises. 

A big can of worms had been open that day that Zoey had been left singing heart songs of her own, although Simon wasn’t aware of why Zoey had sung to him, or that she had sung to other people. He was blissfully ignorant to the fact that Zoey had also sang a heart song to Max. 

But Max knew about her powers, and knew about every song she had sang that day, he’d helped her out during the presentation with the CEO of Sprq Point, proving once again that she could always rely on him. 

Then she sang to him, and had told him, from her own heart that she was his. Only for him to find her singing to Simon a minute later. She knew on some level she owed Max a bigger apology than Simon. 

She just hoped she was able to give him one and that he would accept it. 

The things she had said to Max were unreasonable, demeaning and just not true, at all. 

She had never meant to make Max feel like he was unwanted, or that he was unworthy of working on the sixth floor. She should have never said the things she did, and if she could turn the clock back to ten days earlier and change what she’d said then she would. 

She had known then that he would be missed in the fourth floor, and somewhere, deep down, she wished she had done more to make him stay- as selfish as it would have been, she wished she had done more to make him stay. 

She had never meant to push Max away the way that she had. 

Just like she had never meant to ambush Simon that night. 

She had never wanted to make him feel bad for his grieving over the loss of his father, she knew she couldn’t even begin to understand what he was going through, while her father was ill, she still had him. As limited as their communication was, she could still speak to him, and hear his heart songs, like the one she had heard him and her mother sing a few nights ago. 

She could still have special moments with her dad in the short time that she had left with him. Simon had never had a countdown of time to spend with his dad. Had never known when the end was coming, one day his dad was there and the next, he was gone. 

He hadn’t lost his dad gradually, through ill health or old age, Simon’s father had taken his own life and with it had taken away Simon’s chance to say a real goodbye to him, Zoey still had the chance to have that moment with her father. 

She had already made a promise to herself that she wasn’t going to take any moment she had with him for granted. She still had time with her dad, while Simon was left with nothing but memories and one single picture that he carried with him everywhere he went. 

She had seen his vulnerable side weeks ago, and had connected with him over their shared grief, something that no one else in her life could understand on even the smallest of scales. 

She had taken that grief and used it against him, used the anger she felt to make him feel guilty. She had used her grief, to make him feel bad about his own, and that one small act had made her the biggest hypocrite she knew. 

She hated herself for what she had done to the both of them. She knew that they deserved better than what she had dealt them in the weeks she’d had her powers. She had taken a situation and had used it to her advantage and had manipulated situations to suit herself. Just like Simon said she had. 

She hadn’t realised that’s what she had been doing until he had pointed it out to her. 

She had been far too fixated on herself and her own grief to think about the path of destruction that she left behind her. 

Joan’s marriage. 

Simon’s engagement. 

Her friendship with Max. 

All those things had ended thanks to her and her powers, if she had never had the MRI scan she wouldn’t have ever heard any of their heart songs, and if she hadn’t heard their heart songs then she wouldn’t have; 1) asked about Joan’s married life and got herself inserted into the situation, which led to Joan leaving her husband, 2) she would never have had the chance to connect with Simon on an emotional, (and almost physical) level, which lead him to realise that both he and Jessica would be happier with other people, and 3) she wouldn’t have driven a wedge between her and Max had she never known how he felt about her. Hearing his declaration of love weeks ago had led them to the strained relationship they had now. 

There it was, so much destruction caused by such a small person. 

All because she had these powers she couldn’t control and didn’t want. 

She had never thought about how much destruction she had caused until Simon went to Vegas for his mom’s wedding and she had time to really think things over, from start right up until now, she had definitely caused some messy situations. 

But no one had ever blamed her, no one had ever really called her out for it until that night with Simon. As harsh has his words had been, he had been right, and Zoey had needed to hear those words. 

As much as they had stung, it’s what she had needed to hear. 

Especially that day. 

Especially when she had been so cruel and so distant. She hadn’t been herself that day, she didn’t know who she was, but she definitely hadn’t liked who she was. No one had, everyone had known there was something wrong with her. 

That version of Zoey that they had all been graced with that day had been a monster, it was a version of herself that Zoey had never known existed and one that she never wanted to see ever again. 

Especially when Simon and Max had never been anything other than kind and understanding with her. They were the least selfish people she had ever met in her life and she had treated them both so poorly. 

That day, Simon and Max hadn’t been the only people to find themselves on the receiving end of Zoey’s anger. After the rough day she’d had at work, compiling the argument she’d had with Max, and an awkward, unended conversation she’d had with Simon, she’d gone to her parents place. 

She needed her dad, she needed to hug him, and cry on his shoulder and communicate with him in a way that only she could, she had wanted nothing more than to hear her father sing her a heart sang about how he was feeling, to give her some indication to how he was processing the news, or that despite what the doctors say he was feeling better, or selfishly, she had wanted him to give her advice. 

Of course, when she had finally had the chance to speak to her dad, she had found a shell of the man that she loved, he was present but barely, she had started to fear for the worst and had called for her mother and her father’s new caregiver, only to be told that his lack of cohesiveness was brought on by sedatives. 

Those horrible, depleting drugs had taken her father away from her that night and that had been it for Zoey, the straw that had broken the camel's back, the red mist had clouded her vision and suddenly there was nothing but anger and hate in her tiny body. 

For the first time in her life she had felt a blinding rage akin to hate for her mother. She hated her for making the executive decision to give him the medication, for taking away what few precious moments they had left with her dad. 

Deep down, she knew that her mother had given him the pills out of love, to make his life easier, less painful and to help him succumb to even the smallest amount of sleep. She knew it had been done because her mother genuinely believed it was what was best for him. 

Her mom always did what was best for him, but that night what had been best for her dad definitely hadn’t been best for Zoey. That day all she’d needed was a shoulder to cry on, and it had been taken from her. The ugly, selfish Zoey that had possessed her body that day reared its head once more and unleashed a fresh wave of anger on to her mom. 

The second she was out of the house she’d regretted the things she’d said. She’d wished she could take all the horrible words back, but it had been too late. 

At that point, she’d had no one else to turn to. It was times like that when she would usually turn to Max, and without question he would come running to help her. He’d done it for her countless times in the past, every time she needed him, he had pulled through for her. 

But this time, she knew she couldn’t rely on her best friend anymore. She had pushed him too far away from her, and calling him now would be the wrong thing to do. 

So instead of calling Max, she had called Simon. 

She needed a distraction and had thought Simon would be a good one, she had called him for her own selfish needs, she had wanted to feel anything other than anger, grief and pain and she had thought the best way to do that was to sleep with Simon, it was the temporary fix of feelings she needed. 

Even if it was going to fix everything, she knew it would take her mind off of things for a fleeting amount of time and to Zoey, that was better than nothing. The second he’d walked through the door her lips had been on his. 

Only, he hadn’t wanted to play her little game, he’d asked her to finish their conversation from that morning, before Joan had pulled her away, only the end of the conversation hadn’t been what he had wanted to hear. 

That’s when it had been pointed out to her that her behaviour had been manipulative. 

She had to agree, calling him up to use him for sex to take her mind off of things after she’d berated him for his greif earlier in the day, was definitely hostile and manipulative. They’d fought, and Mo had stopped them. Taking them to his apartment to make them dance out their feelings rather than shouting about it. 

She had to admit, Mo’s method of destruction and release worked better than what they had been doing. The anger and tension that they’d felt seemed to dissipate into the air and leave no trace of itself behind, after that they’d been able to have a civil conversation, parting ways as… whatever they were now, friends maybe? 

She just wished that Mo had been around to help her with Max, too. 

Max. 

Her best friend who had never actually done anything wrong, who had tried to be honest with her only to be pushed away. A man who had helped Zoey whenever she needed it only or her to belittle him and tear him down when he wouldn’t help her of is friends on the fourth floor. 

She couldn’t blame him, she wouldn’t have helped herself either after the way she’d acted. 

That day she had called Max selfish, when in reality the only selfish person between them was her. She had used something she knew Max was proud of, his coding, his promotion and his character, she had taken all of those things and had thrown them back in his face, simply because she could. 

She had hurt him by telling him she didn’t reciprocate his feelings, despite what she sang to him in her heart song, she still wasn’t entirely sure what she had meant that day, she didn’t know if she ever would be sure. But still, she could have been more gentle with his feelings than she had been. 

The more she thought about how she had treated Max and Simon, the more stressed she felt, and she knew that wasn’t a good thing. The last time she got stressed she had let all her feelings out in the medium of song, and in the process had made herself look crazy to anyone who had seen her. 

But he hadn’t thought she was crazy, when Max had seen her singing the presentation he had jumped into the meeting to help her, joining in with her literal song and dance. She hadn’t even asked him to, he just had. 

That’s what had triggered her song, seeing him do just about anything for her had made her question her feelings for him.  _ I’m Yours _ , she wasn't sure what the song meant, and the more she thought about the fact that Max had been hers, for all intents and purposes, and that she had now lost him, the guiltier she felt. 

She played the song over and over in her head, trying to think about just what it had meant, and how even though she hadn’t spoken to him in what felt like forever, she was sure that should he need her for anything then she would definitely be his. 

She rested her head on the back of the elevator, pushed the button for the fourth floor and took three deep breaths, in through her nose and out through her mouth, doing all she could to calm herself down before she had the chance to become a one woman musical for the second time. 

She opened her eyes and took a sip of her coffee. 

It felt odd to be standing in the elevator drinking coffee alone, she still wasn’t used to his absence. She missed getting coffee with him, and talking about their night, he only worked two floors up from her, and at first she had thought that wouldn’t really change things, she hadn’t realised just how wrong she could be. 

Just as the doors to the elevator were about to close, a hand came between them, stopping them in their tracks before they slowly opened again. Zoey looked up to see Max standing on the other side of them, wearing a blue button down shirt, a pair of black jeans and tennis shoes. 

She was glad to see that his promotion hadn’t changed him too much and that he still had his laid back air about him, she didn’t know what she would have done had he turned into one of the  pretentious snobs from the sixth floor, that wasn’t Max. 

She was glad that they hadn’t been able to sink their hooks into him that deeply just yet. 

He walked into the elevator and stood next to her, there was a small beat of silence before, “Look I just wanna--” They both said at the same time, which was quickly followed by a simultaneous, “I’m sorry, you go--” they both chuckled before another beat of silence. 

“You go,” Max said softly, his voice only just audible despite the silence and emptiness of the elevator. 

Zoey couldn’t help but return the smile, it seemed to warm her heart, she’d missed seeing him smile at her like that, since the first day she had met him, this smile had been reserved for her and only her, and every time she saw it, no matter what she was doing, or feeling, it always made her feel better. She was happy to see that it still worked. 

“I really want to apologise for what I said and how I acted. I said some things that I shouldn’t have and if I could then I would take them all back. I know I have already apologised but you really need to know how sorry I am,” Zoey admitted. 

Max nodded his head contemplatively, “And what exactly is it that you shouldn’t have said?” He asked, with a small teasing smile playing at the edges of her lips. Zoey was happy to see him taking things in his stride and seeing the light hearted side to things. The space they’d had was definitely good for them, she could see that now. 

Zoey rolled her eyes at her friend, but returned the smile all the same, “I shouldn’t have said that no one knows why Ava offered you the job,” she shrugged, “I was just taking my stress out on anyone that I could. Honestly, Max, I am surprised that it took this long for you to get a promotion. You’re an amazing coder and such a hard worker.” 

“Well thank you,” He replied, “I forgive you, by the way. But while we’re apologising, I am sorry that I took my anger out on all of you on the fourth floor and for not giving you guys the code, I am even more sorry that I used you as an excuse to not help. It was petty and I shouldn’t have done it, bu--”   


“Max you really have nothing to apologise for,” She cut him off, “The code is yours, we shouldn’t have asked for it. You worked so hard to get as far as you did, and no matter how much of it was done on the fourth floor we’re not entitled to it. I know that it was Leif’s idea, but that code was your work. It belongs wherever you are.” 

“Can we just agree that we both did stuff we shouldn’t have and move on from it?” He asked, “I don’t wanna keep fighting all the time and I don’t wanna let personal stuff interfere with work.”

Zoey nodded her head, “We can definitely do that, and I agree, that’s why I am not letting anything else with my dad spill over into what happens at work, no one deserves that. Least of all you.” 

“I’m sorry about your dad, Zoey, I really am I can’t imagine what you’re going through, I can’t believe that it’s happening to him, he’s such a strong guy,” He said softly, “Do you think he’ll mind if I stop by tonight I haven’t seen him or your mom in a while.”

“No, I think they’d really like that. I’d really like that.” 

“I miss you, Zo, do you know that?” He asked. Zoey shook her head slowly, “Working on the sixth floor is super fun, don’t get me wrong. But it’s not as fun as seeing you everyday and sitting across from you. I miss our talks and I miss making faces at you to make you laugh. I miss all of it.” 

Zoey couldn’t fight the smile that crept onto her face, “I’ve missed you, too,” She admitted with a sigh, “I really have. The fourth floor seems so much quieter without you. I wasn’t lying to you when I said that as a boss I would miss you, but as a friend I couldn’t ask you to stay. You’re such a big presence in my life, both at work and outside of it.” 

“What about the third Zoey, the one that sang to me, does she still feel the same way she did then?” He asked, she could see the hopeful look in his brown eyes and it made her heart ache. She really didn’t know what to say to him. 

She was still trying to unpackage her feelings and just what she had meant when she sang that song to him. She had hoped that the space between them would have given them some kind of clarity, but if anything, it only made the lines between them more blurred. 

Zoey shrugged her shoulders slightly, “I have really missed you around here Max. The office isn;t the same without you, we all feel that. We all lost something special when you went up to the sixth floor. They’re all so lucky to have you up there. Ava clearly knows talent when she sees it.” 

Max nodded his head slowly and sighed, “So would you say that I’m too talented to come back to the fourth floor?” He asked, “Because if you do then I might have to beg Ava to give me my job back.” 

“Wait, you’re coming back to the fourth floor?” Zoey asked, disbelief filling her tone of voice. 

Max nodded his head slowly, “Yeah, as of right now, I officially work on the fourth floor again.” 

“Why?” 

He shrugged his shoulders, “Because, as great as the sixth floor is, they just don’t have something that the fourth floor does,” He admitted, his dark eyes locking with Zoey’s bright ones. 

Zoey nodded her head in understanding, “Yeah the cereal bar is pretty cool,” She replied, with a small smile and a joking tone inching its way into her voice 

Max chuckled before shaking his head, “No. They don’t have you.” 

Zoey felt her heart skip a beat at his words. She hadn’t been expecting such sincerity from him. Not so soon at least. After everything they had been through, she never thought she would hear words as nice as that from Max again. 

She definitely didn’t deserve it. Not after everything she had said to him and put him through. 

But that was just the thing with Max; she didn’t deserve a lot of the things that he did for her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed chapter two, it’s a bit of a longer chapter than the last one, but once I started writing it I just couldn’t stop. Hopefully that’s not a bad thing. This chapter was heavily Team Max oriented so I hope that's okay (there is some team Simon coming up though.)
> 
> Again, the end game for this fic is already made up in my head no matter what the show writers decide to go with my fic will still end the way I already have planned. 
> 
> Thank you for the bookmarks, kudos's and comments so far. I really appreciate it. 


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Their shared elevator ride was much more pleasant than Zoey had initially anticipated it would be when she had first seen Max that morning. When she had brought up the topic of conversation, she’d had no idea how her apology would be received, especially when he couldn’t walk away from her if he needed to, or wanted to, he hadn’t been able to hang up the phone or not respond to a text- she had caught him when they were trapped inside a small, confined space. She realised that, much like she had with Simon those ten days earlier, she had ambushed Max, only this time, instead of it being an ambush of pent up rage and grief driven anger, it was an ambush made up of apologies and regret. 

She knew that most people wouldn’t have accepted her apology so easily, other people wouldn’t have given up the opportunity of a lifetime just to be back with her, especially not after everything that she had put him through. She knew that had the shoe been on the other foot, she wouldn’t have been so quick to forgive him, not after the things she has said. 

But he was Max, and he would do just about anything for her, he’d said so in his heart song when he had sang The Proclaimers,  _ I’m Gonna (500 Miles) _ . He would do anything for her, even if it was just to be the man that fell at her door from exhaustion. 

She had known for some time now that he cared about her, that maybe he even loved her. He’d sang it in heart songs, multiple times, and had even professed his feelings for her in a flash mob in a crowded food court. She still wasn’t sure how she felt about the latter. 

Of course, she had been flattered by his gesture, and a little overwhelmed, but she had never been the type of person to love grand gestures like that, and had she had her way, she would have preferred for a declaration like that to be done in private. 

He had done so much to show her how much she meant to him, including, the more recent event of him giving up his better job, on a better, much more privileged floor in Sprq Point, she would never be able to thank him enough for the things that he had done for her, nor would she ever be able to repay him for what he had done, simply to be around her, and so he could spend time with her again. 

As soon as the thought of repayment settled in her brain she shook it out again. She knew that she didn’t  _ have _ to repay him, or do anything to thank him. Max would never ask her to do anything like that. He had never asked her for anything in their whole friendship, other than for her to be honest with him. That’s all he had ever wanted her to do, to be open and honest with him about her feelings, and she was still to do that for him. 

She wasn’t sure if she ever would be able to do that. 

She knew, deep down, the reason she hadn’t ever been able to tell him how she felt was because she still didn’t know how she felt. Everything was still so up in the air for them, and for her and Simon, too. Though she was ever so slightly closer to fixing things and having things back to normal with Max, she knew that she still had a long way to go to fixing things fully with Simon. 

They’d spoken a little after their fight and after Mo had made them dance all their feelings out, they’d apologised and talked things out, as much as they could anyway. She knew she needed to talk to him the first chance that she got, she just hoped that the time they’d spent apart had done what it was supposed to, and hadn’t driven a wedge between them further. 

The last thing she wanted in any of this was to take steps backwards, with Max or Simon. 

Max and Zoey found themselves enjoying easy conversation during their short elevator ride together. They’d talked about her family, and how things had been with her dad since they’d last seen each other. Zoey asked about the sixth floor and asked if there was any gossip worth sharing, he too asked about any fourth floor gossip, only to be disappointed when she told him that things between Leif and Joan seemed to have hit a stand still and she was left feeling very dissatisfied when he revealed that there was literally no gossip at all from the sixth floor, and that it had been a lot more boring up there than he had ever thought it would be. 

When all grounds of family life, and gossip had been covered they found themselves talking about the bake-off, which according to Max had actually been the most interesting and by proxy, the most exciting thing to happen the entire time that he was up there. Granted, he hadn’t been up there for any longer than a week, but still, he had told Zoey that life on the fourth floor was a lot more exciting for multiple reasons. 

“Honestly Max, as your friend and boss, I just want to say, welcome back to the fourth floor. I really can’t wait to win this thing with you and crush those snobs on two floors up,” She chuckled as she looked at the boy beside her, both of them falling into step with each other as they walked the short distance from the elevator to their desks. 

Max gave her a soft, warm smile and nodded his head slowly, “Yeah, as nice as they all were, winning this thing with you guys is going to be so much more fun than winning with the sixth floor would have been.” His usual air of confidence filled his tone of voice. 

His confidence was something that Zoey had always admired and liked about Max, and after being away from him for so long she found herself liking it that much more. To Zoey confidence had always been an extremely attractive trait, providing that it never crossed the line and became cockiness. 

“Wait, you really think that you’d have won the bake off if you were still on the sixth floor?” Zoey asked, a small smirk playing on the edges of her mouth. As good a coder as Max was, she had been  _ very _ confident in her team's ability, of course, she was slightly more confident now that Max and his codes were back. She knew that he had done some amazing work for The Chirp, but she had never doubted her team's ability. 

Max shook his head and furrowed his eyebrows ever so slightly, “I don’t think I’d have won… I know I would have,” He replied, ever confident, with a small, teasing smile on his lips. “C’mon, Zo, my code is awesome, and we all know it. There’s a reason you guys came to ask me for it. I would have definitely won it for the sixth floor had I stayed there.” 

Zoey was just about to open her mouth to say something when the sound of a stern, slightly intimidating voice cut through the air, cutting Zoey off before she had even been able to say anything. “Max, can I see you in my office for a second?” Joan asked, as she stood in the doorway to her office, her face sculptured into her usual stoney look. 

Zoey had always heard the expression ‘resting bitch face,’ but she had never really understood what it meant until she had met Joan. When she had first started working at Sprq Point, she had been happy to see that the only other woman on the fourth floor was a woman in a position of power, it gave her hope that someone like her could climb the career ladder, however, it had always been so hard to read Joan. 

There were many occasions where Zoey had been called into the older woman’s office, and had been worried about the outcome of the meeting, always fearing for her job, only to be met by nothing but words of praise from her boss. 

Had she not known any better, she would have sworn that Max was in for a world of trouble. 

“Like right now?” Max asked, his dark eyes widening slightly, “I was just talking to Zoey about my co--” 

“Yeah, I don’t care, come into my office,” Joan replied in an almost bored tone, with that she turned her back on the pair of them and walked back into her office, leaving the door open for Max to close behind him when he stepped inside. Max stood motionless for a few seconds his mouth agape slightly, before he turned his attention back to Zoey. 

“I wouldn’t keep her waiting, it’s your first day here on the fourth floor, you don’t wanna lose your job already do you?” Zoey teased, Max let out a breathy laugh before turning on his heel and walking away from the red-haired woman. 

She watched as Max walked into Joan’s office with a small smile on her face, she dropped into the chair at her desk feeling lighter than she had when she’d first woken up what morning. She could already feel things falling back into place. Or at least things with her and Max were falling back into place. 

She tore her eyes away from Max and Joan to look at Simon's office, the second she saw the other man pacing around his office, talking animatedly on his cell phone, with a small smile on his face she felt her heart rate quicken. 

It felt like it had been so long since she had seen that smile, maybe even too long. 

She had missed his smile so much, in the short time that she had known him, she had gotten so used to seeing it and had gotten used to the warm feeling it gave her. She couldn’t believe how attached she had become in the short time that she had known him. 

It felt odd to her. 

Usually it took her years to let down her walls and to let people in, but Simon, had been a force to be reckoned with, he had walked into Sprq Point and with him had knocked down Zoey’s walls and had left her feeling like she could trust him with just about anything.

She had told him about her dad without any hesitation, speaking about her dad was no easy thing, it shook her to her core everytime she had to speak about the older man, the first man who she had ever been able to rely on and who had never let her down once in her life. 

That was until Simon and Max. 

Who other than her dad, might be the two greatest men she had ever met. 

She had reconciled with one of them, now she just had to talk to Simon, too. 

One down, one more to go. 

She could do this, she knew that she could. She had to see him and make things right, or at least try to. She hoped more than anything that the time he had spent in Vegas had actually done the trick, that he felt better and that they could be better now. 

The last time she had seen Simon had been the day before he left for Vegas, they’d had coffee together and conversation had been tense. There had been something hanging in the air, something that Zoey couldn’t put her finger on at the time. 

It hadn’t been like it once was, they both seemed distant from each other, almost like they were still deflated after their anger dance party they’d had with Mo. 

Zoey just hoped that his time in Vegas had done what they had both hoped it would. 

She hoped it had brought Simon the joy he needed, that seeing his mom happy might strike something in him for him to find his own happiness, after all that’ all she wanted for him. For him to handle his grief better, to start moving on from it and allow life to go back to normal. 

She couldn’t even begin to imagine how hard it must be to move on from something like that. It felt impossible to her, to lose a parent and then just move on from it and keep living your life as if nothing had happened. 

To just wake up, everyday and act like everything was the same as it was before. 

She knew that she had been asking a lot of Simon last week, and that her words had been unfair. She shouldn’t have expected him to move on so quickly from his father’s death when it had only been a matter of months. 

She couldn’t even move on from her father’s illness and she still had him, or what was left of him, every day she lost him more and more and every day she fell deeper and deeper into the same black hole that Simon was in. 

She had asked him to find a way to claw himself out. 

She knew that she needed to as well, one of the first steps to doing that? Apologise to the people she had hurt, to move on from the angry stage of grief she had felt, and to move onto acceptance. 

The acceptance, that just like everyone else, she was going to lose her dad at some point, it just so happened, that she was going to lose her dad while he was still relatively young. 

She took a deep breath, before pushing herself up from her seat and heading towards his office, she held back a little bit, until she saw him hang up his call and place his phone in his pocket, before knocking on the door. 

Simon looked up and gave her a wide smile.

“Aloha, Simone,” Zoey chimed, instantly regretting her choice of greeting, and of course, calling him Simone. She had no idea why she’d done it, much like she had no idea why she had greeted him with a ‘howdie’ the first time she had spoken to him at work when he walked past her and Max. 

She realised that lately she was starting to regret a lot of things that she did, no matter how much she wanted to do them in the heat of the moment. She had no idea why she was doing most of it, she had always been a slightly awkward person, but still this seemed to be one of her most awkward moments, she definitely hadn’t planned on the first thing she said to him after a week apart to be ‘Aloha Simone.” 

However, if he minded, he definitely didn’t show her that he did, instead he gave her a slight chuckle “Hi, how’re you?” 

“I’m good thanks, how are you? How was Vegas?” She replied, feeling her nerves spiking just a little bit more. She couldn’t explain why, but she often felt herself getting a little jittery around Simon. 

He nodded his head slowly, “It was… good,” He replied with a slight sigh, almost as if it was hard for him to think of a word to describe his week away, before finally settling for the word ‘good,’ 

“You don’t sound so sure about that,” Zoey said, tilting her head just slightly as she took in the look in his eyes, “Is everything okay?” She asked. 

“Everything is fine, he reassured her with a small, tight lipped smile, “I guess that more than anything it was an odd week. Don’t get me wrong it was nice getting to see some of my relatives again, and it was great to meet my mom’s new husband. He seems really nice and he makes her happy--” 

“But?” Zoey asked, Simon furrowed his brow at her, and tilted his head slightly, “I just felt like there was a but coming, sorry if I was wrong,” She shrugged and gave him a small smile. 

“I can never hide things from you, you just know me too well,” He smiled softly, “I guess, being there and seeing my mom get married to someone, made me realise just how close I had been to my own wedding with Jessica, all we needed to do was pick a date and a place,” He sighed, “Thinking about how close my wedding had been just really made me think about how my dad won’t be around to see me get married. He won’t be around for any of the big moments, y’know?” He asked, “Like, when I do finally get married, when I have kids… he’s gonna miss all of that.” 

Zoey nodded her head slowly, in understanding, “I get that feeling, and I know that it must be really hard for you,” she placed a comforting hand on his leg, smiling when he laid his hand over hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“It was, and while I was feeling that way I remember that the whole point in me being there was because I was happy for my mom and I wanted to support her. I also wanted to take some of the joy she and her new husband are feeling and see if it could rub off onto me and make me feel something other than grief.” 

“Did any of it work?” Zoey asked, she wanted to help Simon, in any way that she could. That’s all she had ever wanted since she first heard his heart song and saw that underneath his cool, calm and collected exterior, that everyone around him loved, was a man who was broken and fighting with dark feelings. 

She still wanted to help him now, for him to be able to handle his grief in a healthier, much more productive way than he had been, she wanted that for him and for herself, she knew that the way she was handling things wasn’t exactly healthy. They both needed to work on their coping mechanisms, she hoped that maybe they could help each other. 

He nodded his head slowly, “Yeah, I think it did, up to a point,” He admitted, “But I realised that I needed more than just to  _ see _ other people be happy and to be around other happy people to be happy myself. I need to actually unpack everything that has happened in the last few months, I need to be able to really unpack what I am feeling and work on it however I can.” There was a beat of silence before Simon spoke again, “Which is why I have decided to look into therapy.” 

“Therapy?” Zoey asked. 

Simon nodded his head slowly, “Yeah. You were right, I was just looking backwards and holding on to this feeling of endless grief. Meeting you enabled me to open up to someone for the first time since my dad died. You have helped me so much and I don’t think that you know that. I can’t just rely on you though, laying all of my problems onto you, when I know that you have your own stuff to deal with isn’t fair, it’s pretty selfish, and I am not a selfish person. The way I acted when I was mad at you wasn’t fair either, I shouldn’t have said I didn’t like who you were that night- I mean, she’s not my favourite variation of Zoey, but, I get how you were feeling, and I want you to know that I always  _ like _ you.” 

Zoey shook her head, “Simon you did nothing wrong that night, I don’t want you to feel like you have anything to apologise for when I am the one in the wrong. I am so sorry once again for the things that I said to you. I am sorry if I ever made you feel like there is a time limit on grief and that yours had expired,” She continued, “I never should have said those things to you. I was mad at a shitty situation that I am stuck in, and I took that out on everyone around me. But the truth is, everyone grieves in their own way and everyone goes through those different steps at their own pace. There is no rush for you to go through those steps. I just want you to know that I’m here for you anytime you need it.” 

“Yeah, I know you didn’t, and like I said, you’re going through your own stuff, grief can be really hard, but it’s even harder if you go through it alone and don’t open up to those around you and tell people how you’re really feeling. I know that I can count on you, and I want you to know that you can count on me, too. Anytime you need or want someone to vent to, I’m only fifty feet away from you.” He smiled softly, “But, I think that we could both use some therapy.” 

The look on Simon’s face told her that he was anxious to bring up the topic with her, and that now the subject was out in the open, he was really anxious about how she would react, not knowing how she would feel about being advised to go to therapy. She’d be lying if she said that she hadn’t ever thought about it. Especially in the more recent weeks of her life. 

She had never known just how it would feel to be going through something like this, and for her dad to only have a matter of weeks left with them all. Nothing could have prepared her for the dull, constant aching pain in her chest, or the twisting in her stomach and all the intrusive thoughts running around her head. 

Every day she woke up, she feared that it would be the last day that she would have with him, she knew that living her life in constant dread wasn’t healthy, that it wasn’t good for her and would only make things worse for her at the end of it all. 

Living every day of her life in dread was definitely impacting the time that she spent with her dad, she already feared that it might be the last time that she saw him, but now it impacted how she would act around him and the things that she would say and do whenever he was near. Every time she went to her mom and dad’s house, she felt like she was treading on eggshells. 

Just like she had told Simon all those weeks ago, being happy around her dad always made her feel like she was betraying him. She couldn’t control that feeling. She couldn’t take away the feeling of dread and the sadness that she felt about her father’s inevitable death. There was nothing that she could do to numb the pain that she felt all day, everyday. 

But she figured, with the help of therapy, maybe she could get those feelings off of her chest, and that maybe, just maybe, she would feel less guilty about laughing, smiling or even having fun with her family when they were around her dad. She knew that they should be doing all they could to fill the last weeks her father had with them, with joy and happiness. But, that was so hard when there was so much that her dad couldn’t do anymore. 

She turned her mouth down in thought, “Hmm, I don’t know, I think that I’ve got a solid grip on this whole grief thing,” She replied sardonically, “I am handling it all, super well, I haven’t even had an outburst of anger in over a week.” 

Simon chuckled and nodded his head, “I know you’re doing the best you can, Zoey, you’re handling it a lot better than other people would. But I do think therapy will help you out, even if it’s just so that you have someone else to talk to.” 

She sighed and nodded her head slowly, “Fine, I’ll think about it, but only because  _ you _ think it would be good for me.” Her words made a small, genuine smile form on Simon’s face and it instantly made Zoey feel better about everything that had happened between them. 

She couldn’t help but wonder why Simon’s smile always made her feel better, and made her stomach knot up in the best ways possible, there had always been something about him that had made her heart flutter, and since being away from him for a week, that feeling only seemed to intensify. “I missed you while you were away.” 

“I missed you, too,” He admitted, his voice only just above a whisper, despite them being safe in the confines of his office. “What do you say, we grab a Cheesequake at lunch, so that we can talk things out?” 

Zoey nodded her head slowly, a small smile spreading across her lips, and her heartbeat quickened just a little at the thought of being alone with Simon in a better setting than them being at work. “I’d really like that,” she admitted. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The third chapter is up and the next chapter should be done soon!! I can't believe we only have one episode left of the season!! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!! Thank you to everyone who had commented, kudosed, bookmarked and subscribed so far, I really appreciate it


	4. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

After making her lunch arrangements with Simon, she headed back to her desk with a new sense of clarity. She had apologised to and made amends with Max, which she hadn't thought would ever happen anytime soon, even though he would be working with her again, (which she also hadn't expected), she was expecting some kind of a rejection from him. She had spoken to Simon, and felt like maybe they could get back to what they were before… Whatever they were before. 

Could she really count what she had with Simon as a friendship? Or were they simply colleagues who happened to like each other's company and confined in each other when things got rough? Or, a third option, were they more than both of those things? 

She couldn’t be sure, but what she was sure of was that things were definitely looking brighter than they had been days ago, both Max and Simon had given her time to talk to them and apologise, and both of them seemed to have accepted her apology, and that was more than enough, for now at least. 

Max furrowed his eyebrows at the petite red-head as she took her seat with a small smile on her face. He looked over to Simon’s office to see him wearing a similar look as he sat at his desk, with his fingers tapping away on the keys of his laptop. 

“Hey, uh, what were you doing in Simon’s office?” Max asked, trying to keep his voice as casual as he possibly could as he turned his attention back to Zoey, he’d been back at his desk for some time after his back-to-work chat with Joan.

Not that Zoey had noticed, she had been far too preoccupied with Simon, but little did Zoey know, that Max had seen pretty much the entirety of their whole conversation. 

Zoey shrugged her shoulders, “Nothing much, we just had some stuff to talk about, from before he went to Vegas,” She replied, trying to keep her tone as casual as Max had, to little avail, Zoey had never been able to be as collected at those around her. She didn’t want to think too much into her conversation with Simon, she knew that would only lead to more complications and nerves between them, and things had never really been simple, except for that brief day when Simon had ended things with Jessica and invited Zoey over for dinner. 

Of course her powers had soon complicated the would-be date, much to her dismay. She had wanted so badly for their date to go well, and that they could become more than what they were, but hearing Simon singing _Mad World_ for the second time, showed her just how badly he was still grieving. She knew that because of everything that had happened, they still had a lot to talk about from before he left for Vegas and left their relationship up in the air. Before leaving, Simon had told Zoey that she deserved to be with someone who could be fully present in a relationship, of course, he had shortly followed that statement up with the question; _can you be patient with me?_

Zoey had hoped that their time apart would be good for them, and that since he’d had more time to think about everything that happened with them, and had been given the time to think about his break-up with Jessica- only, being in Vegas seemed to have done the opposite, and had made them think about that relationship and just how close they had been to actually being married. 

Everything had been ready for them, apart from setting a date. 

The sound of Max’s voice pulled her from her thoughts of Simon, Jessica and whatever was happening between her and the other man, “What kind of stuff?” Max asked, a confused look etching its way onto his face. “You don’t have to tell me if it’s something personal.” 

Zoey looked up from her laptop screen, her bright blue eyes locking with Max’s brown ones, she shook her head quickly, “No it was nothing like that,” She explained, not wanting Max to get the wrong impression about what she had been doing with Simon. “We were just talking a little about my dad and how I’m dealing with everything.” 

His brows knitted tightly over his soft eyes, and Zoey instantly saw the concern, and hurt rooted deep in them. He cared, she knew that, he cared about Zoey and how she was coping with everything, but he also cared about her dad. 

She had always known that Max adored her father, admired him, she knew that, while he didn’t feel pain to the same level or extent that she did, that her father’s illness and his inevitable death was hurting Max, too. 

“And how are you coping with it?” He asked, his voice as soft as his features. 

Zoey sighed, she could lie, and say that she was doing fine, that she had a cool and steady mind and had a perfect grip on what was happening to her, maybe she should lie, it was easier, it’s what she’d been doing for months now. Just like Simon had been. 

She swallowed hard before deciding to bite the bullet and face things head on. She knew she could trust Max, and that he’d be there to support her no matter what, just like he always had. 

“I’m coping better than before, I’m slowly getting used to the fact that what’s happening with my dad is inevitable,” She admitted, “I haven’t sang to anyone lately, so that’s a plus,” She chuckled lightly, making a small smile appear on Max’s face. “But I’m not a hundred percent okay… “I’m thinking that maybe I should get some therapy?” It came out like more of a question than anything else. 

Zoey had intended on asking those around her what they thought about her getting therapy, she had Simon’s opinion, he was all for her getting help, now she wanted to know what the other important people in her life thought; her brother, David, her mom, maybe even her dad, and of course, Max. 

“Therapy?” Max asked, Zoey nodded her head slowly, giving him a silent reply, “Why therapy?” 

She shrugged her shoulders half-heartedly, “I don’t know, I just think that it would help me out a lot if I had someone to talk to about it, and really get my feelings out, y’know?” 

Max nodded his head, “Yeah, I get that, but I hope you know I am here for you, Zo, any time you want or need anyone to talk to." 

“Yeah I know you are, I always know that I can count on you, and I appreciate it, I appreciate it so much, Max, but I don’t want to burden anybody. I think that, I really need to get my feelings out there to someone who isn’t in the circle of things that’s happening.” There was a beat of silence before speaking again, “I know you’re not part of the family, but, I think you’re too close to the situation because of what my dad means to you. Does that make sense?” 

“Yeah, that makes total sense,” He replied, “If you think therapy would help then I support you wholeheartedly,” Zoey knew that he meant it, there was no doubt in her mind that Max would support her through this. 

“Thank you, I just don’t want to get too stressed again, I mean, look at what happened the last two times I got overly stressed.” 

“The last two times?”

“Well the first time I was getting stress headaches and I had the MRI scan an--”

“Oh my God, Zoey, that sounds really boring, how about you do some work instead?” Joan asked as she came to stand next to Zoey and Max’s desks, “As I am sure you’re all aware, Max has rejoined our team on the fourth floor today, which means that I now expect excellence from you,” Joan continued, “We got him and his coding back, no more playing around. I want you all to win this thing.” 

“Yeah let’s go fourth floor, whoo,” Max chimed, overly excited. 

Joan gave him a questioning look and sighed, before shaking her head slowly, “Get back to work.” Without saying another word she walked away from her team of coders, retreating back to her office and closing the door behind her. 

“Joan seems like she’s in a really good mood today,” Max stated as he looked down at his laptop, tapping away on the keys and writing the next level of software coding for The Chirp

Zoey nodded her head slowly, “Yeah, since you’ve been gone she’s been a ray of sunshine.” 

“She’s not the only one who seems like she’s in a good mood this morning,” He commented, allowing his eyes to glance from his screen to Zoey. “You haven’t stopped smiling since you got back from Simon’s office.” 

“What?” Zoey asked.

Max shrugged, “It’s not a bad thing, I’ve missed your smile, a lot,” He admitted, “But whatever you guys had to talk about, it cheered you up from when I first saw you.” 

Zoey furrowed her eyebrows and shook her head, “That’s not the only thing that’s cheered me up, Max, you’re back working on the fourth floor, we’re gonna win the bake-off, our coding is going great, I have a lot to be happy about right now.” 

A small smile spread across Max’s face at Zoey’s words. She was happy that she had been able to placate him, even if just slightly, she didn’t want to ruin things with Max when she had only just fixed things with him. He replaced the smile with a mock look of smugness, “Yeah, I guess I am pretty awesome, having me back must be like a dream come true, I’m sure Joan will be even happier now,” He teased, smiling when Zoey let out a light laugh. 

She nodded her head slowly, “Exactly,” She replied. 

The morning passed by uneventfully, Zoey and Max chatted idly, Tobin made his ridiculous comments and jokes any chance he got, and Leif spent most of the morning looking into Joan’s office, trying to get her attention. 

Zoey had been watching the seconds pass by on the clock counting down the hours until she could see Simon for lunch, feeling thankful that the morning was passing by at a quicker pace than they had last week. While Simon and Max were away from her, there had been times that Zoey had felt like she had been sat at her desk, working for hours, when in reality she had only been sat there for thirty minutes. 

She was happy to see that her work days were starting to go back to normal now that she had made amends with Max and things seemed to be on an up for them, as well as whatever she had with Simon. She had never thought that her life would revolve so heavily around the people in her life, she had always been so happy to be alone, had never really minded sitting at a desk and losing herself into the world of coding. 

But now she had Max and Simon, and as much as she hated to admit it, they both played big parts in her life in the last few months. Of course, Max had been a big part of her life for the last five years, she just hadn’t realised how big of a part until he had been missing. She knew that wasn’t the best way to think about someone, and that the ‘not knowing what you have until it’s gone’ state of mind is a pretty overplayed cliche, but that didn’t make it any less true. 

The week that Max had been working on the sixth floor and Simon had been in Vegas had been the longest week of her life so far. 

She was thankful that after her conversations with both Max and Simon, that her days and life could go back to normal, if that’s what they had been- ever since she got her powers she wasn’t entirely sure anything was normal anymore. 

She looked at the time on her laptop; 12:30pm, she slowly turned her chair to face Simon’s office, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips when she saw Simon shutting down his laptop and placing his phone back into his pocket. 

She could feel her heart rate picking up slightly, she took a steadying breath before standing up from her seat slowly, her eyes never leaving his office. A voice from behind her startled Zoey, and pulled her attention back to the present. 

“Hey Zo, wanna head out the food court to grab some lunch?” Max asked, she could still feel her heart thrumming in her chest as she looked at him, though she wasn’t entirely sure it was just the scare she’d had that was causing the erratic heart beats. “I promise I won’t sing to you again,” He continued with a chuckle. 

“I am so sorry, Max, I can’t today,” She admitted as she pulled on her jacket and put her phone into her pocket. “I’m heading out to lunch with Simon today.” 

“You’re getting lunch with Simon?” Max asked, a glint of hurt appearing in his dark eyes, she guessed that she should have suspected a similar reaction; she and Simon were something of a point of contention between her and Max. 

They had been ever since he had caught her serenading him with _I Want You To Want Me_ minutes after singing _I’m Yours_ to Max, of course, back then Simon had still been engaged to Jessica, and Zoey was willing to admit that throwing herself after an engaged man the way she had that day wasn’t a strong point in her character. 

But that day she’d had no real control over anything she had done. Had she been able to control it, she definitely wouldn’t have sang to both of them, of that much she was a hundred percent positive. 

She could understand why Max wasn’t overly fond of everything that had happened between her and Simon; after all, he had put himself out there and expressed how he had felt to Zoey in a grand gesture, he was single, available, and admittedly attractive, but still she had been focused on someone who was completely unattainable, at the time at least. Max had been the one to bring that to her attention the day of her glitch, she knew, deep down that he had been right. 

_The morally questionable, totally engaged guy_. 

His words still ran around her head daily. Simon might have been newly single now, and he might be available now, but at the time of her musical confession he definitely hadn’t been. Max, on the other hand, had been available for a while, she knew that he had always been there for her, until she had caused him to withdraw, until she had become mad at him and lashed out, and inadvertently hurt him. 

She nodded her head slowly, “Yeah, I am.” 

“Oh,” Max replied, his eyebrows furrowing tightly over his eyes as they grew even sadder. Going for lunch together had been something they had always done, ever since they met on employee orientation. 

The only times she could recall they hadn't done this, was when she first met Simon and they had their very first cheesequakes together, and when she and Max had taken a break from their friendship. Even she knew deep down that skipping lunch with Max felt odd, but there was some part of her that still held curiosity of where she and Simon currently were, when he had left for Vegas everything had been up in the air. 

Zoey wanted nothing more than for things to become grounded between them, one way or another. 

“But uh, I was thinking that since you’re coming over to my parents place tonight, maybe we could get take-out for dinner?” She offered with a small shrug, “My treat?” 

He sighed and nodded his head slowly, “Yeah, sure, whatever,” He replied with a halfhearted shrug, his tone of voice flat and devoid of any emotions. 

“Hey Zo, you ready to go?” Simon asked in a sing-song style voice as he came to stop by her desk. 

Zoey looked from Simon to Max, and gave her best friend a soft apologetic smile, before looking up at Simon, “Yeah, ready as I can be,” She replied, giving him a tight lipped smile as they started to walk towards the elevator. 

Her heart clenched slightly as the look of Max’s hurt expression lingered in her mind. 

“So… Max is back then?” Simon asked, as they stepped inside the elevator, “When did that happen?” 

“Oh this morning, actually,” Zoey replied nodding her head slowly, “I was shocked when I found out,” She admitted. 

“You didn’t know? I thought that you and Max were like, super close?” He asked, a pang of jealousy entering his voice. 

Zoey nodded her head slowly, “Yeah we are, but…” She trailed off, “I guess there are some things we don’t tell each other right away,” She admitted, “But I didn’t mind the surprise, turning up to work today to find out that Max was back on the fourth floor was a pretty good start to my week.” 

Simon nodded his head slowly, “Well,” He smiled, “Hopefully, I can only add to that.” 

Zoey grinned as they stepped out of the elevator and headed out of the entrance to the Sprq Point building, “You already are,” She smiled nudging him slightly, “It really is great to have you back y’know?” 

Simon returned her smile, “It great to be back, I missed you while I was gone, I know I wasn’t gone long, but I did,” He shrugged, “I also went to one of those medieval things you suggested.” 

“You did?” 

“Yeah… and you were right, jousting and giant turkey legs, really do make you feel better.” 

Zoey shrugged her shoulder, “Oh yeah, I know what I’m talking about.” 

“You do…” He replied with a small chuckle, “Next time I go to one you’ll have to go with me.” 

“I’d like that.” 

There was a moment of silence before Simon spoke again, "I know we touched on this topic a little earlier, but how has everything been with your dad since we last saw each other?” He asked. 

Zoey sighed and shrugged her shoulders, “Same as always, no improvement, I haven’t seen him for a few days though, so I’m heading over tonight,” She explained, “I know I should go more than I do, but, I’m scared that one day I’m gonna go and it’ll be the last time I see him.” 

Simon sighed, “I get that… in a way,” He admitted, “I mean, I never went through what you are, so I’ll never fully understand, but I saw my dad deteriorate mentally, I didn’t think the last time I saw him would be the last though, I can’t imagine what it feels like to know any day could be the last time you see him.” 

“It’s not easy, but I try not to dwell on it,” She admitted, “Some days are a lot harder than others though.” 

They continued on to the cheesequake place, walking at a steady pace, enjoying each other's company and talking animatedly about random things that came to their minds. Simon had made lighthearted jokes to try and make her feel better. For the most part it had definitely worked, there was just something about his aura that always made her feel better. 

Once they had ordered, and Simon had paid for their cheesequakes, (Zoey had tried to pay for her own, but Simon had been un-moving in his offer and had eventually won the battle), they sat by the window to begin eating their desserts. 

Zoey had missed small moments like this with Simon, and it had only been a week since she had seen him, she couldn’t believe, just how much he meant to her in such little time that she had known him, and she couldn’t believe how much she had missed him the week he had been away. 

“Yeah… this really is still the best cheesecake that I have _ever_ had in my life,” Zoey smiled as she finished her last bite, “Thank you for lunch, but next time, it’s definitely on me.” 

“Next time?” Simon asked, a small smile tugging on his lips. 

Zoey nodded, “Yeah, next time,” She replied, “Pretty sure the last few times we’ve been here you paid for me,” She shrugged, “So I am definitely repaying the favour next time… it’s only right that I treat the person who showed me this place. And introduced me to the best cheescake in the whole state.”

“The whole state, uh, try the whole world, Zoey, I know my stuff when it comes to food and I pride myself in that.” 

“I can see that.” 

“It’s a real shame that you never got to taste my pasta that night,” He sighed, his voice quieter than it had been before, though a playful smirk spread across his lips, making Zoey’s stomach flip slightly. 

“I am still so sorry about that night,” She admitted, “I shouldn’t have left as quickly as I did. It was so rude of me, you put in all that effort for me and I just walked out on you.” 

That’s okay,” He replied, “Maybe you can try it next time.” 

“Next time?” 

Simon nodded his head, “Yeah, I was really hoping there’d be a next time.” 

“Me too,” Zoey admitted, a small smile tugging at her lips. 

* * *

The rest of the day passed by in just as much as the blur as the morning had, they’d had some breakthroughs on the fourth floor thanks to Leif and Tobin and their ambition and incredible teamwork, along with Max's coding. Max had slipped back into his old job role easy enough, saying he preferred life as a worker bee on the fourth floor to being a team leader on the sixth. He and Zoey had chatted absent mindlessly about anything and everything, just like they always had.

The longer she spent with him that day, the more she realised just how much she had missed having him around, and just how much brighter her days were when he was in them. 

They had made their way to Zoey’s parent’s house in an easy silence, which Zoey was happy hadn’t been filled with any singing from Max, or any awkwardness from linger tensions, with Max, everything was easy and she was thankful that things were back to normal already. 

They pulled up in front of the family home, and both turned to face the house. 

Zoey turned her attention to the man beside her and took a deep breath, “Max, before we go in there, you need to know that my dad is a lot worse now than the last time you saw him,” Zoey warned. 

Max nodded his head slowly, “I know, Zoey, and I don’t have to be here if you don’t want me to be.” 

Zoey shook her head slowly, “No it’s not that, I want you here,” she replied, “I really want you here. You care about my dad and I know you do. I want you to be able to see him before--” He breath caught in her chest before she had a chance to finish the sentence. 

Max reached out and took her hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze, “Hey, everything is gonna be fine, okay?” He asked, his dark eyes soft as they studied her. 

“When?” 

Max took a deep breath, “I don’t know, I just know that they will be. But Zoey, if you ever feel like everything isn’t okay, I’m here for you. Anytime you need me," He replied quietly. 

Zoey gave him a soft, sad smile and squeezed his hand, “Thank you.” 

She took a deep breath before letting go of his hand, already missing the contact, as she stepped out of Max’s car, they walked up to the house together, in silence Zoey’s hand stilling on the door handle as she turned to Max. 

“Are you ready?” 

Max nodded his head slowly, staying silent as she opened the door and took the first few steps into the house, “It’s just me and Max,” She called out alerting her mother of their arrival as she stepped into the living room to see her dad staring at the TV screen, watching an older Western movie. 

“I’ll be right through,” Her mother replied from the kitchen. 

“Hey Dad, look who’s here to see you,” Zoey smiled as she got closer and closer to the older man, “You remember Max, right?” She asked, watching as her father used his computer to write out his answer the determination clear in his eyes. She sat down next to him and looked at the screen before turning her attention to Max, “He says yes he remembers you.” 

A small smile spread across Max’s face, though Zoey could see the sadness in his eyes as he looked to the man who had played the role of his honorary father for the past few years. 

“Hey, Mitch, I brought you some soup, french onion, your favorite, right?” Max smiled at the older man, and gestured to the tub filled with soup in his hand Zoey watched as a small amount of happiness, and what she could have sworn was a hint of a smile flashed in his eyes, “I’m gonna go put this in the kitchen and I’ll be right back.” 

She had always known that her dad thought highly of Max, and vice versa, but to see it in action again for the first time in what felt like forever, made a warmth spread through her like nothing else. 

These two men were easily two of the most important people in her life, and she didn’t know what she would do without either of them. The thought left her stomach in knots, she knew that one day soon she was going to have to live her life without one of them. 

She just really didn’t know how she was going to do it. 

She felt better knowing that she had people supporting her through this whole ordeal; her mother, David, Howie, Mo, Max, and of course Simon, she counted herself as blessed to have all of them in her life. 

Just knowing that she had people supporting her made this a little easier to deal with. 

She took the seat next to her dad and wrapped her arms around his, before kissing his cheek, “Hey, Dad,” She spoke softly as she settled beside him, “So Max and I are friends again, which is just awesome,” she sighed, “And Simon got back from Vegas today, he’s the guy I like… I think he likes me, too… but a little while ago, when I was singing to people, I sang to him and Max, and I am just not sure what that means yet.” There was a beat of silence before she spoke again, “They’re both great though, and I’m happy that I’m talking to them both again, I’m also really happy to see you again,” She smiled at the older man. 

The sound of Max walking back into the room stopped their conversation, he stood in the doorway and smiled at them both, “Come in,” Zoey said softly, nodding her head slightly to gesture him into the room. 

“Hi Mitch,” Max sighed as he sat on the chair next to the couch, he looked to the TV screen before looking back at Mitch, “Oh I love this movie,” He admitted with a bright smile, “I’ve not seen it for a while though, do you mind if me and Zoey watch it with you?” He asked. 

Once again, Zoey watched as her dad struggled to write a response, the determination and ambition never leaving his eyes, it broke her heart to see him so determined to do something that was causing him so much struggle, she wondered if it also caused him pain at this point. The thought of her father being in pain and losing his ability to tell them hurt her more than anything else had, all she could do, was hope that any pain he might have felt was limited to none. 

She smiled when she read her dad’s message and turned her attention back to the dark haired man, “He said he’d really like that,” She replied. 

Max settled into the chair and turned his attention back to the TV. It was a small action that he had done, and was a small moment that she could share with her dad and best friend, but it was the one thing that had made her the happiest all day. 

She had been right when she’d this week was starting out as a good one, Max and Simon had definitely helped that today, she just hoped that it would continue for the rest of the week. 

They had stayed to watch the movie with Mitch and had watched an episode of a survival show with him and Maggie, while Zoey’s mom had tried to feed him the soup that Max had brought him,, seeing him struggle, with such a basic daily task broke Zoey completely, she had tried not to focus on him struggling to keep the soup in his mouth, and struggling even more so to swallow it. 

She and Max had left not long after that, seeing him that way was becoming too much for her, and scared her more than she wanted anyone else to know, every day that she saw him, his condition took over his body more and more, meaning that every time she saw him, was a day closer to her never seeing him again, and that was something that Zoey couldn’t bare to think about. 

When they had been leaving, she had given her mother and father longer hugs than she ever had in her life, telling them both how much she loved them, and promising to see them again tomorrow. 

She and Max had sat in an easy silence in the car as the drove to pick up some takeout food to take back to Zoey’s apartment, she kicked her shoes off as soon as she got home and headed to the kitchen without saying a word to Max, grabbing two plates for food and two glasses for some water. 

“Thanks for inviting me to your parents house tonight,” Max said softly, as he helped her dish out the food, “It was really great to see him again.”

Zoey nodded her head slowly, “It’s not a problem, thank you for going with me, I think he was really happy to see you,” Zoey replied, her voice cracking slightly as she thought back to how feeble her dad had been. 

Without another word, Max gently took her arm and guided her towards him, pulling her into a warm hug, “I am so sorry about everything,” He mumbled, keeping her small body pressed against his, “I am sorry for acting the way I did before, I am sorry for not being there when you needed me, and I am sorry about what’s happening to your dad.” 

She shook her head slightly, feeling the fabric of his shirt rubbing against her skin, and sending a slight scent of his cologne into her face, “You have nothing to apologise for, and I don’t want you to think you do. I wasn’t fair to you. But thank you for being here for me now,” She smiled up at him sadly as she pulled away from his warmth. 

“Where else would I be?” He asked with a shrug, “I am always going to be here for you Zoey…” There was a beat of silence before he spoke again. “I’m yours,” He replied, a small teasing smirk on his face, “Should you need me.” 

“You really aren't you?” 

* * *

They spend the rest of their night watching old movies from the 80s, and making stupid jokes about them, while they ate their chinese food, it was a little after eleven PM when Max left her home, pulling her into another hug at the door. 

“Call me if you need or want anyone to talk to, no matter what time it is, alright?” 

Zoey nodded her head, “I will,” She promised, her arms tightening around him, the hug seemed to be over all too quickly for Zoey’s liking, and just like when had let go of his hand earlier that night, she felt herself missing the small amount of contact she’d had with him. She watched until he disappeared out of her eyesight and out of the apartment building, her heart rate picking up, until she could feel it drumming against her ribcage, threatening to burst through her bones. 

She locked the door and rested her back against it, taking a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth, trying to calm herself down as she made her way into the kitchen to clean up after them. 

Max had offered to stay and help her of course, but she hadn’t wanted the help, as much as she appreciated his offering, and she really did, she didn’t want to feel dependent on people. 

She moved around her apartment slowly humming contentedly to herself as she cleared away the take-out containers, poured the remains of Max’s water down the sink, washing his plate and hers before getting herself another glass of water. 

It settled somewhere in her brain as she made her way back into the living room, that the song she had been humming wasn't just any song, it was a song she had sang to someone not too long ago, and at the time had been convinced it meant only one thing. 

_I’m Yours_. 

She shook the song from her head and chuckled to herself quietly, she dropped herself onto her couch and began to flick through her options on Netflix, trying to find something to watch. 

Her phone buzzing across the table pulled her attention away from the options on the comedy section, and an involuntary smile made its way to her lips when she saw Max’s name on her screen. 

**From Max: Remember, I’m here for you if you need me.**

His text reiterated his earlier words, and she knew that he meant them, because he always meant them. He was Max, he was one of the most sincere people she had ever had the pleasure to meet. 

His words said everything that she needed to hear from him. 

_I’m here for you. No matter what time, no matter what day. I am here for you._

Just like the song she had sang to him those days earlier, and like the song she had been humming since he walked out of her apartment, they said the two words, that deep down she had always known to be true about Max. 

_I’m Yours_. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A really late update and for that I am sorry, I already have so much of this story written or planned, so really it’s just a case of going and tying up loose ends and editing and sometimes I don’t have the motivation to do so. 
> 
> Also, what did we all think of that season finale????? What a roller coaster of emotions, my heart broke so much, the episodes was so beautiful and sad in the best way, and shows just how truly talented the cast and crew are!!
> 
> We got team Max and team Simon moments, (I hope you were happy with the moments your ship got, I know I was), but we’re still not closer to having an end to the love triangle, hopefully season 2 will give some closure to us all. 
> 
> Even though we had some great moments for both ships in the finale and the season overall, my heart truly does lie with one ship more than the other and I can’t even lie about that. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone that has commented, and left kudos, and bookmarked or subscribed to this story so far, I really do appreciate all of it, so please leave your thoughts and feelings about this chapter, the show, your ship below. 
> 
> I hope you continue to enjoy this story as it continues. 


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